Thrust and radial bearing apparatuses are commonly used in a variety of mechanical applications. For example, subterranean drilling systems, turbomachinery, hydroelectric plants, wind mills, cranes, turbine generators, and power plant machinery may utilize bearing assemblies.
Wear-resistant, superhard materials are commonly utilized in various types of bearing assemblies. Conventional superhard materials have found utility as bearing elements, including bearing elements utilized in thrust bearing and radial bearing assemblies. A conventional polycrystalline diamond compact (“PDC”) thrust-bearing assembly may include a steel rotor or stator bearing rings configured to accept a number of superhard bearing elements. The superhard bearing elements may be made from a polycrystalline diamond (“PCD”) layer formed on a cemented tungsten carbide substrate.
One or more superhard bearing elements may be attached to a bearing rotor or stator by press-fitting, brazing, or through other suitable methods of attachment. Typically, bearing elements attached to a bearing rotor have superhard faces configured and oriented to contact corresponding superhard faces of bearing elements attached to an adjacent bearing stator.
Brazing the superhard bearing elements into the support ring may involve high temperatures that can damage (e.g., graphitize) the polycrystalline diamond of PCD bearing elements and may cause the bearing ring to warp. As the size of the bearing ring increases, the warping effect of the brazing process on the bearing ring may also increase, making very large bearing apparatuses difficult and costly to manufacture. Additionally, components of traditional bearing assemblies may be very costly and difficult to repair or replace. A worn or broken bearing ring must typically be entirely removed and replaced or sent to a separate facility for repair. If on-site repairs are an option, they are often difficult and costly; the difficulty and cost associated with such repairs is magnified as the size of the bearing apparatus increases.